Star Wars Holiday speacial

Batman002 · Post by **Batman002** » 2003-03-26 08:16am

I was over at TF.N and saw a thread about it being but on DVD and thought with the strong opinions found here what would be your responce to something like this hitting the shelf?

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2003-03-26 08:33am

I'd buy it.

FettKyle · Post by **FettKyle** » 2003-03-26 12:34pm

I might buy it. Only if it costs $18

Post by **Kuja** » 2003-03-26 01:39pm

I've seen it.

I'll never touch it.

Joe · Post by **Joe** » 2003-03-26 01:48pm

I've seen it, and it brought me nothing but pain (with the exception of the animated short). I wouldn't go near it.

Crix Dorius · Post by **Crix Dorius** » 2003-03-26 03:40pm

Aye...

Just the Cartoon and the Scene where the Imperial Officer talks with the old man are good...

The rest is... trash.

Currald · Post by **Currald** » 2003-03-26 09:54pm

Rent it. You'll NEVER want to see it more than once. Seriously. I was totally obsessed with seeing it, being a hardcore Star Warrior at the time, and when I finally rented it, I couldn't even sit through it. I had to break it up into two viewings. It's one of the worst things I've ever seen on my television screen. It may be that with repeated viewings one could come to appreciate it in a campy way, but I couldn't even bring myself to make a bootleg of the tape. I just couldn't stomach it.

Post by **Vympel** » 2003-03-26 10:06pm

Why hasn't Lucas used his elite SS to destroy all copies, goddamit.

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2003-03-26 10:10pm

I don`t remember every seconds of it,i just dismiss it as a nightmare

Stormbringer · Post by **Stormbringer** » 2003-03-26 10:15pm

No. It was crap even compared to the shitty Star Wars tv movies.

Captain tycho · Post by **Captain tycho** » 2003-03-26 10:26pm

Now, I've heard alot about this SW Special. What's in it tht's so bad?

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2003-03-26 10:30pm

Captain tycho wrote:Now, I've heard alot about this SW Special. What's in it tht's so bad?

If you realy want to know it was the cheesiest thing ever done

how could Lucas ever managed to put Christmas in a galaxy far far away.

Cal Wright · Post by **Cal Wright** » 2003-03-26 10:53pm

I've never seen it, and though it might be utter crap, I'd still buy a copy. I'm a heavy nutt.

Slartibartfast · Post by **Slartibartfast** » 2003-03-26 11:15pm

Is it worse than the Ballad of Bilbo Baggins?

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2003-03-26 11:17pm

MAN you guys really want to waste your money

Kurgan · Post by **Kurgan** » 2003-03-27 03:35pm

It's be nice to have it in the bargain bin with all the historical information included, etc.

I know its an embarrassment (both to fans and Lucas himself) but its there. And heck, Lucas needs every penny for Episode III, so he can make a few extra bucks off of it for curiosities sake instead of letting it all go to bootleggers.

For now I'm satisfied being able to download encoded bootlegs to see the mediocrity. ; )

Technically it's not xmas. The word "Christmas" is never mentioned. It's the HOLIDAY special and its about the Wookie celebration of "Life Day."

It just happened to be aired around Christmastime. ; )

It's worth seeing if nothing else for:

-More Luke Skywalker before his cosmetic surgery.
-First appearance of Boba Fett.
-Wookie homeworld and Chewie's family.
-Bea Arthur singing in the Mos Eisley Cantina.

(Okay, maybe not the last one!)

I think people hate it mostly for the cheesy songs, low low budget special effects (some of it is just recycled footage from ANH) and Carrie Fisher's bad singing. Other than that, and the inherent goofiness of it all, it's quite watchable, once.

Currald · Post by **Currald** » 2003-03-27 10:45pm

Kurgan wrote: For now I'm satisfied being able to download encoded bootlegs to see the mediocrity.

See, that's the point. There's good, there's mediocre, and there's Bad! Good movies break conventions, and prosper for it. Mediocre is terrribly disappointing in its uninspired blahness. Think Steven Segal movies. They're terrible, but in a mediocre way. The SW Holiday Special is wayyyy over there with Manos the Hands of Fate, in that it breaks multiple conventions, but in a totally disastrous way. It's nearly intolerable to watch, because it DOES engage your attention and forces you to analyse it, but it is irredeemably unpleasant.

Joe · Post by **Joe** » 2003-03-27 11:21pm

Honestly, you people who want to see it have no idea what you're getting in to. If your morbid curiosity must be satisfied (as mine did), then download it off of a file-sharing service. Do not pay any kind of money for this under any circumstances. It's like watching the rape-murder of a family member. That may sound a little harsh, but trust me, it isn't.

Macross · Post by **Macross** » 2003-03-28 01:27am

Montcalm wrote:
Captain tycho wrote:Now, I've heard alot about this SW Special. What's in it tht's so bad?
If you realy want to know it was the cheesiest thing ever done how could Lucas ever managed to put Christmas in a galaxy far far away.

Actually, Lucas had nothing to do with the Holiday Special, and fought hard to try and stop it from being made.

generator_g1 · Post by **generator_g1** » 2003-03-28 01:48am

I keep hearing this on our local TV station every Christmas...

Merry Christmas everybody!!! and may the Force be with us always!!!

Did they rip these lines off the Holiday Special?

Kurgan · Post by **Kurgan** » 2003-03-28 09:01am

Actually, Lucas had nothing to do with the Holiday Special, and fought hard to try and stop it from being made.

I heard just the opposite and that what you just said was just revisionist fanwanking.

Lucas had put his stamp of approval on it, etc etc until after it aired, and flopped, and he then distanced himself from it.

(but if you can prove it, I'll concede that point, that's what I heard anyway)

I mean c'mon, you don't think GL is capable of (for lack of a better term) 'crap'? We're talking about the guy responsible for "Howard the Duck" and "Jar Jar Binks." ; )

As to it already being out on dvd, they must have been referring to bootlegs, unless Lucas has decided to acknowledge it again after all.

Update: All I could find on IMDB.com was this

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
George Lucas (uncredited)

Pat Proft

Leonard Ripps

Bruce Vilanch

Rod Warren (I)

(trivia section)

George Lucas famously attempted (and failed) to buy up all master copies of this special to ensure it was never broadcast again.

This special has never been released on video, however bootleg home-recorded videos have been circulating for years and are now all over the internet. George Lucas once remarked at an Australian convention that "If I had the time and a sledgehammer, I would track down every bootlegged copy of that program and smash

And some comments that say (assuming they're accurate) that Lucas himself tried to stop all production AFTER it aired (not before). So he had to have approved it at some point... right? Remember at this point ESB wasn't guarenteed to be made.

Macross · Post by **Macross** » 2003-03-28 07:29pm

Kurgan wrote:I heard just the opposite and that what you just said was just revisionist fanwanking.

Lucas had put his stamp of approval on it, etc etc until after it aired, and flopped, and he then distanced himself from it.

(but if you can prove it, I'll concede that point, that's what I heard anyway)

I mean c'mon, you don't think GL is capable of (for lack of a better term) 'crap'? We're talking about the guy responsible for "Howard the Duck" and "Jar Jar Binks." ; )

As to it already being out on dvd, they must have been referring to bootlegs, unless Lucas has decided to acknowledge it again after all.

Update: All I could find on IMDB.com was this

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
George Lucas (uncredited)

Pat Proft

Leonard Ripps

Bruce Vilanch

Rod Warren (I)

(trivia section)

George Lucas famously attempted (and failed) to buy up all master copies of this special to ensure it was never broadcast again.

This special has never been released on video, however bootleg home-recorded videos have been circulating for years and are now all over the internet. George Lucas once remarked at an Australian convention that "If I had the time and a sledgehammer, I would track down every bootlegged copy of that program and smash
And some comments that say (assuming they're accurate) that Lucas himself tried to stop all production AFTER it aired (not before). So he had to have approved it at some point... right? Remember at this point ESB wasn't guarenteed to be made.

Most of the information I have on Lucas' involvement with the Holiday Special come from quotes attributed to Lucas himself.

But you do have a point. The inclusion of Boba Fett would suggest that Lucas was involved somewhere along the way.

Anyway, the Holdiay Special is aweful, simply aweful and Lucas has every right to bury it.

Kurgan · Post by **Kurgan** » 2003-03-29 08:27pm

He tried to do something "special" and ended up making it crappy. In this case he admits his mistake, and I can live with that (it's just a curiosity).

Just that I see it as the whole "revisionist Lucas" yet again... trying to say he "always intended" this or that, when in reality he had no idea it was going to bomb at the time, so he approved it.

Though, the modern Lucas is a little more protective of his stuff, refusing to acknowledge the legitimacy of the anti-Jar Jar bandwagon (well, maybe a tiny tiny bit, but he'd never admit it in public).

Then again, he did "screw around" with his stuff in the Special Editions, so who knows... I guess we can't predict what that man will do next (other than make lots and lots of money). ; )

Lord Pounder · Post by **Lord Pounder** » 2003-03-30 09:45am

Excuse me Kurgan i liked Howard the Duck. Fair enough i haven't seen it since i was like 10 but anyway.

Frank Hipper · Post by **Frank Hipper** » 2003-03-30 07:38pm

Durran Korr wrote:It's like watching the rape-murder of a family member.

Listen to him people, it REALLY is that bad. Some of you will have to go out and see it anyway, and then you'll find out. And then you'll remember his words......